A Cyber War. Let’s call it Cyber War I.

(The Washington Post) The Obama administration on Friday officially accused Russia of attempting to interfere in the 2016 elections, including by hacking the computers of the Democratic National Committee and other political organizations.

The denunciation, made by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the Department of Homeland Security, came as pressure was growing from within the administration and some lawmakers to publicly name Moscow and hold it accountable for actions apparently aimed at sowing discord around the election.

“The U.S. Intelligence Community is confident that the Russian Government directed the recent compromises of e-mails from U.S. persons and institutions, including from U.S. political organizations,” said a joint statement from the two agencies. “. . . These thefts and disclosures are intended to interfere with the U.S. election process.”

The majority of all future battles will be for control over information. Russia, it seems, make a direct attack against us in the run up to the election. No doubt we are currently retaliating as you read this.

The public finger-pointing was welcomed by senior Democratic and Republican lawmakers, who also said they now expect the administration to move to punish the Kremlin as part of an effort to deter further acts by its hackers.

“Today was just the first step,” said Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Neb.), a member of the Homeland Security Committee. “Russia must face serious consequences. Moscow orchestrated these hacks because [Russian President Vladimir] Putin believes Soviet-style aggression is worth it. The United States must upend Putin’s calculus with a strong diplomatic, political, ­cyber and economic response.”

As the internet grows more advanced, and becomes more entwined in everyday minutia, the damage caused by cyber attacks can be more debilitating than simply calling an election into doubt. It can have real world impact on the health and well being of people, from the minute by minute operations of hospitals, to the automated energy systems being relied upon during extreme seasonal weather conditions in any number of countries, to the flow of transportation in almost all major – and even minor – urban centers.